Thursday, May 07, 2009

GE commits $6 billion in new “healthymagination” launch

GE today unveiled its new “healthymagination” business strategy, which will dramatically expand the company’s healthcare business through 2015. A key component is the investment of $3 billion in R&D over the next six years in a specific portfolio of more than 100 innovations designed to lower costs and improve healthcare access and quality. In addition, GE is committing $2 billion of financing and $1 billion in related GE technology to drive healthcare information technology and health in rural and underserved areas.

The initiative is modeled after GE’s successful ecomagination business strategy, which is designed to drive growth for GE and its investors by building innovative technologies to help customers address their environmental and financial needs, such as the need for cleaner, more efficient sources of energy. Similarly, key goals of healthymagination are to grow GE’s business by accelerating the development and deployment of healthcare information technology and by pushing high-tech products to more affordable price points, thereby expanding their adoption.

Under healthymagination, by 2015 GE will:

Invest $3 billion in research and development to launch at least 100 innovations that lower cost, increase access and improve quality by 15 percent. GE will also apply its expertise in services and its suite of performance improvement tools for impact in these areas. These actions will strengthen GE Healthcare’s business model.

Work with partners to focus innovations on four critical needs to start: accelerating healthcare information technology; target high-tech products to more affordable price points; broaden access to the underserved; and support consumer-driven health.

Expand its employee health efforts by creating new wellness and healthy worksite programs while keeping cost increases below the rate of inflation.

Increase the “value gap” between its health spend and GE Healthcare’s earnings to drive new value for GE shareholders.

Engage and report on its progress. GE will engage experts and leaders on policy and programs and create a GE Health Advisory Board, which will include former U.S. senators Bill Frist and Tom Daschle and other global healthcare leaders.